We have just returned from Fox and Chuck Morton's ferret farm where with a
new baby ferret -- "Meltdown" (it seems to fit). While there we chatted a
bit about the negative attitude towards ferrets that seems to be spreading
and they offered a note from a lawyer in California (along with some real
horror stories involving the destruction of ferrets by "authorities").
 
The text (modulo my typing) follows:
 
 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
>From the desk of Bill Phillips:
 
                Ferrets and Babies
 
The hysteria surrounding domestic ferrets and human babies is probably the
most difficult to address in any coherent fashion. Like Chicken Little's
misinterpretation of atmospheric phenomena, the resulting data from all
investigations into the subject can be viewed quite differently, depending
on the bias and the mental acuity of the reader.
 
A short course on domestic ferret natural history is in order before
proceeding. The following data is critical to understanding just why the
major opponents of domestic ferrets in this country are wrong in just
about everything they postulate about domestic ferrets. (Whether they are
wrong by design or by ignorance is still the only real question in this
whole matter.)
 
1.) Domestic ferrets (Mustela furo or Mustela putorius furo) are related to
and, in all probability, descended from the european polecat (Mustela
putorius, also known as the fitch) and the steppe polecat (Mustela
eversmanni). Domestic ferrets are not polecats and vice versa. (The Hand
book of British Mammals, Cobert and Southern, 2nd edition 1977; British
Mammals, Matthews, Collins 1968; History of Domesticated Animals, Zeuner,
Harper and Row, 1963; Walker's Mammals of the World, Nowak and Paradiso,
John Hopkins University Press, 1983.)
 
2.) The domestic ferret has been domesticated for at least 3000 years. (History
of Domesticated Animals, Zeuner Supra)
 
3.). There are numerous fur farms in the United States and in Europe that raise
and sell fitch as ferrets. They can do this because the sable color variation
in the domestic ferret and the natural fitch color pattern are almost
identical. This can lead to some rather unpleasant results. Fitch are wild
animals, and while they can be tamed quite nicely, they retain all of their
wild instincts. One breader in New Jersey stated to this author that he sells
fitch as pets to the public. He tells everyone, including the State of New
Jersey they are not ferrets, they are fitch, and New Jersey still holds they
are ferrets, as if it makes no difference.
 
4.) In every instance where there has been an "attack" involving small babies
the animal that is (mis)identified as a ferret is described as being "a fitch
colored ferret". In every instance investigated by this author, when
questioned as to the identification of the animal involved, no on involved
in the investigation, ever, has been able to distinguish between a domestic
ferret and a fitch. When asked "How did you know it was a ferret?" they reply
has been, "That is what I was told."
 
Before we get to specifics let's look at some general statistics about animal
bites in general. The author's favorite saying is that there are lies, damned
lies, and statistics, but be that as it may at the very least statistics can
be useful to demonstrate certain things. Among them is placing raw data in
a comparative format for analysis.
 
Americans keep approximately 46,000,000 dogs as pets. Each year there are in
excess of 1,000,000 bites requiring medical attention. (United States only.)
 
Of these, some 44,000 involve severe injuries, including death. 16,000 of
these involve severe injuries to the face requiring plastic or reconstructive
surgery. The majority of these incidents involve children. Remember, these
reflect a yearly incidence.
 
There are a minimum of 3.5 to 5 million pet domestic ferrets in the United
States. The two largest breeders alone sell in excess of 50,000 domestic
ferrets per year as pets. There are literally hundreds of smaller breeders
nationwide who sell between a few and several thousand pet domestic ferrets
annually.
 
Since 1978 the most rabid and hysterical opponents of domestic ferrets in the
country, (Denny Constantine, DVM of the California Department of Public Health
and Stanley L. Diesch DVM MPH of the University of Minnesota) have been able to
document (sort of) a total of between 8 and 12 incidents where major damage
requiring somewhat extensive medical treatment was allegedly inflicted by a
ferret on a human infant. (Worldwide)
 
Let's look at the numbers before we proceed. 46,000,000 dogs and 1,000,000
bites requiring some kind of medical attention. 44,000 severe bites per year,
requiring extensive medical treatment including several deaths annually.
16,000 severe facial injuries, mostly to children, requiring reconstructive
surgery. Per million dogs there are 21,739 bites requiring medical attention,
per year; 956.52 serious injuries requiring major medical attention, including
some deaths, per million dogs, per year; 347.82 severe facial injuries, mostly
to children, requiring major reconstructive surgery, per million dogs, per
year.
 
A minimum number of domestic ferrets is 3,500,000. Assuming for the sake of
argument these incidents all involve domestic ferrets there are 12 documented
incidents since 1978, this results in slightly more than 1 incident per
3,500,000 domestic ferrets per year. Per million domestic ferrets that equals
slightly more than 1/3 of one incident per year.
 
How anyone can view that as a significant health risk which deserves restrictive
legislation is certainly beyond me.
 
One of the truly great quotes from one of these health "professionals" was
from Denny Constantine who replied to a statement by the author that perhaps
polecats were being misidentified as domestic ferrets in the attacks reported,
that the author was "splitting hairs". The author feels that is "splitting
hairs" the same way refering to Dr. Constantine as a pederast when I mean
a pedagogue is "splitting hairs".
 
Dr. Constantine freely admits, to his credit, that he does not know anything
about domestic ferrets. His specialty is bats. (Apropo) More specifically,
rabies in bats. He is, however, one half of the Constitine-Diesch ripple
effect of domestic ferret mis-information. In virtually every article these
two Ferretphobes write they cite each other as a resource.
 
Diesch cites Constantine; Constantine cites Diesch. Sometimes they will even
go so far as to cite themselves in previous articles as proof of their
allegations. It reminds one of ripples in a pond, moving back and forth between
the walls. The only possible reason that anyone take these "authorities"
seriously is that if one only sees one or two of their articles there is no
frame of reference on which to judge their accuracy. By viewing all of their
writings on the subject one can understand just how shallow and
misrepresentative their data truly is.
 
One of the tragic incidents involved a 6 month old infant in England that was
killed by her father's polecat-ferrets*1. The newspaper clipping of that
incident included in their chapter to show just how misleading information
can be when it is taken out of context and misrepresented by so-called
"authorities".
 
In every case that is reported there are common themes that seem always to be
present.
 
First, there is always gross parental neglect.
 
Two short examples: In the English case the parents went down to the local
pub for a few hours leaving the baby unattended. The home showed signs of gross
neglect, not only of the baby, but of all animals therein. The animals involved
in the incident were "polecat-ferrets". The term "polecat-ferret" has special
meaning in England and refers to a polecat-ferret cross that is bred for
hunting. (Handbook of British Mammals, Supra).
 
In the Carson City case involving a 29 day old baby the facts established that
while the monther was out drinking with friends, the father was home drinking
by himself. He placed the animal in question, which had been found in the
backyard the day before, in the baby's crib to quiet the child. He fell into
a drunken stupor and when the mother returned several hours later, the baby
had been chewed on by the animal resulting in disfiguring injuries. Who did
the investigating officer (Det. Coffee) blame? The animal. It makes you
seriously question the minimum standards for being a detective in Carson City.
 
Second, the animal in question is always descrived as being "fitch-colored".
 
 
        *************************************************
 
Let's look at the numbers...............
 
Generally accepted population figures for the United States:
 
Dogs:           46,000,000      Ferrets:        3,500,000 (min)
 
Bites requiring medical attention:
 
Dogs:           1,000,000+      Ferrets:        65 reported bites in 10 yrs)
                                                (1978 -1988)
 
Serious injuries inflicted by animal bites (single or multiple):
 
Dogs:           44,000 per year Ferrets:        Perhaps as many as 12 in 10 yrs
                                                or 1.2 per year.
 
Severe facial injuries requiring plastic or reconstructive surgery:
 
Dogs:           16,000 per year Ferrets:        Same as above - 1.2 per year
 
How does this break down per million animals?
 
Bites requiring medical attention per million animals per year:
 
Dogs:           21,739          Ferrets:        1.8
 
Serious injuries inflicted by animals per million animals per year:
 
Dogs:           956             Ferrets:        1.2
 
Severe facial injuries requiring plastic or reconstructive injuries per million
animals per year:
 
Dogs:           347             Ferrets:        .34
 
Sources:        PIJAC, Harvard Medical Review, and CDC Publications.
 
When you add to the above information the fact that many of the serious
injuries attributed to domestic ferrets can arguably be blamed on European
fitch that have been sold as domestic ferrets, you begin to get some ideas
of just how inane the arguments against domestic ferrets really are.
 
 
------------------------------- end of note -------------------------- 
 
 
The above note was written for lobbying purposes and has been apparently
published in some of the ferret newsletters. It would be interesting to see
a well-written carefully documented article. If the numbers quoted above are
within an order of magnitude of being correct, a carefully written document
could be of enormous use to all of us. --- Actually in light of the recent
US election as well as the one that is going on in Canada, perhaps a lobbying
style note is preferable :-)
 
 
I'll send a note describing the visit to the ferret farm. It was an interesting
place.
 
 
                Steve & Sukie Crandall
                att!mhuxt!evans
 
[Thanks for sending this article!  I'm sure it will be of some help to
others down there.  As far as I am aware, ferrets aren't explicitly
banned anywhere in Canada.  There was a proposed municipal bylaw
in an area I used to live in that would have simply excluded all members
of mustelidae, (along with *ALL* rodents, *ALL* birds other than canaries,
*ALL* reptiles etc.) but it was never passed.  Most municipalities have bylaws
intended to prevent people from keeping farm animals or dangerous exotics
(tigers etc.).  However, these bylaws are only enacted on complaint and
I've never heard of anybody running into trouble with a ferret.  And,
frankly I think most of these bylaws would collapse if ever challenged
over something like a ferret.
 
Yes, please write about the Morton's place - my wife and I might
want to visit after using their ferret book as our primary resource.]
                                                                          
[Posted in FML 0039]